It is especially appropriate for any amateur who tries to keep up on archaeology and encounters new words/ideas. Since the coverage is encyclopedic, you will undoubtably find the explanations you want in this book!


THE Introductory textbook   January 21, 2000
13 out of 14 found this review helpful

Speaking as an archaeology student who just finished a class using this textbook, I can do naught else but overflow with praise for this book. Eminently readable, it proved to be well-adapted to taking notes, and was interesting enough that it was sometimes hard to put down.

Renfrew and Bahn provide an excellent survey of world archaeology, and they do not fall into the trap of using jargon and big words. This contrasts sharply with the anthropology textbooks I've suffered through, many of which seem to have been written while the authors were constipated.

Overall, a superior book. Also notable for being relatively low-priced, which is a bonus for us students. Perhaps this is proof that someone in academia does care! It compares well to some of the $80, razor-thin anthropology textbooks I've wasted my money on. I highly recommend this book to anyone at all interested in archaeology.


Perfect introductory manual   June 21, 1999
8 out of 9 found this review helpful

This is a great book. I read this book for my methods and theories class and it was very complete and easy to understand. Especially helpful are the explicit "real life" examples of the text comcepts. I would recommend this book to trained archaeologists, 'armchair' archaeologists and students.


Excellent summary of the discipline   August 23, 1998
7 out of 8 found this review helpful

Widely respected among professional archaeologists as an excellent introductory text. It also reads well for the layman. I would reccomend this volume, both to students of archaeology, as well as to anyone with a more casual interest in the subject. By understanding the theories and practices which define the modern discipline of archaeology, the casual reader will be well equiped to distinguish valid theories from the pleathora of pseudo-science archaeology which tends to clog the shelves of this section in your average bookstore